


the parent trap

by uselesslesbiantrash



Category: The Worst Witch (TV 2017)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - The Parent Trap Fusion, F/F, Hardbroom is also Mildreds mum, I'm Bad At Tagging, Inspired by The Parent Trap (1998), MUMBROOM, Post-Divorce, Twins, Useless Lesbians, mildred hubble has a twin
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-06
Updated: 2020-06-01
Packaged: 2021-03-02 22:02:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 14
Words: 14,457
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24044071
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/uselesslesbiantrash/pseuds/uselesslesbiantrash
Summary: The parent trap is one of my favourite films so I thought I would do a mumbroom au where Julie and Hecate have twins. Mildred (Millie) and Tabbitha (Tabbie).
Relationships: Hardbroom & Mildred Hubble, Hardbroom (Worst Witch)/Original Character(s), Hardbroom/Julie Hubble, Julie Hubble & Mildred Hubble, Pentangle (Worst Witch)/Original Character(s)
Comments: 27
Kudos: 35





	1. Summer camp

  
“Come on Millie! If you don’t get yourself in this car, sharpish, there’ll be trouble” calls Julie Hubble to her daughter, while trying to pack the boot with all the stuff Mildred, or Millie as she was commonly referred to, would need for summer camp. “Now Sarah will drive you there and then come and collect you in four weeks, okay?” Sarah was Julie's best friend and lived in the spare room of their little flat, she had done since Millie was a baby. Mildred hugs her mum tightly and then gets in the car. “Bye Millie-love, have fun!” her mum calls after the car, waving so wildly that her curls scatter over her face, her mum had this beautiful blonde hair, it always made Millie jealous, her own hair was dark brown. “Bye mum! Love you!” she calls back. “Ready squirt?” Sarah asks, turning to look at Millie. “Yeah, I think I am” four whole weeks would be the longest she’d been away and she was scared but also excited, anything could happen at summer camp after all!   
  
In a similar house on the other side of a mountain and thick forest, Hecate Hardbroom was also getting her daughter Tabbitha, Tabbie, ready for her four week camp adventure. “Now this is a mixed camp okay Tabbitha? So no brooms and magic tricks unless you are with other witches. Do you hear?” she says in a strict voice. “Oh leave off Hiccup! Tabbie let's get going before your mother bores you to sleep!” comes the voice of Pippa Pentangle, Hecate’s best friend, occasional cook and non paying lodger. She had lived with them for as long as she could remember and was the only witch that Tabbie knew who could drive a car. “You are not taking her in that Pip!” Hecate protests, she had a hate for cars. Pippa was certain that it was to do with the memory of the last time she was in a car…. but the other witch would never speak of that memory so she wasn't sure. Hecate was such a closed off person, Pippa couldn't even remember the last time she had seen her crack a smile, well that was untrue, Pippa remembered it perfectly but talking to her best friend about it would involve bringing up the one thing Hecate banned them from speaking off, so Pippa kept quiet. “It’s just a car Hiccup! She’ll be fine!” the blonde woman says lifting her hat off her golden waves and changing into a more ‘ordinary’ pink sundress. “Plus how else do you suggest I take her without drawing attention to ourselves among the mortals?” she asks with a smug smile, she already knew she’d won. “You will definitely draw attention in that thing” Hecate scoffs motioning to the car, which like most things owned by the woman, was bright pink. “But less than going but broom or transferation” Hecate sighs, she couldn’t argue there “fine! Take her in the metal death trap!” she exclaims giving up. Tabbie feels the excitement ball up in her stomach, she loved her mother, really but it would be nice to get away from her strictness and endless magic lessons. Summer camp seemed like a perfect time to relax and forget about the fact she will be starting at ‘Cackles academy for witches’ in the coming september.  
  
******   
Finally at camp Sarah leads Mildred by the shoulders to a table with a man sat sorting through campers. “Hiya, who's this then?” he asks in a chirpy tone. “Mildred Hubble” Sarah says with a smile. “H-H-H ah Hubble! You're in cabin C26, just by the lake” he point’s it out on a map and gives them basic directions. “Alright Mills, that’s the easy bit done, now we’ve got to trek all your bags to this cabin” says an sarcastically-excited Sarah. _‘This is half the fun camp’_ Millie thinks as they finally throw the last of her stuff in the corner she decided was hers. She waves goodbye to Sarah and goes to meet her other cabinmates, Enid and Maud. they had one more girl in their cabin who they had to wait for. Tabbitha.

****  
“Pippa we’re going to be late! What if I don’t get all my stuff in on time!” Tabbie was getting more nervous at the second. “As if I hadn’t already thought of that, you ‘stuff’ as you put it is already there and so are we!” and suddenly they were. It was all Just as Tabbie hoped, there were so many people. “You look excited, I would be too if I got four weeks away from your mum” Pippa makes small talk and jokes all the way to the sign up table. “Heya camper, can I get a surname so I can tell you your cabin?” says the chirpy person at the table. “Hardbroom” Pippa says with a smile and a slight wave. “Pip! Stop being such a flirt!” Tabbie hisses. “Cabin C26, will that be all, do you need help with your things?” the man wasn’t even looking at Tabbie, he just seemed to notice Pippa. “No! We’re fine!” Tabbitha calls dragging the pink clad woman away from the table. “I’ll just help you find your cabin and then I think I will get going, okay? Remember you will be in a cabin of witches so don't be scared to mirror us and if you make friends with someone non-magic you can always call me on your mobile.” Pippa rambles slightly. The cabin is just by the lake and already full of her cabinmates. “Guess this is goodbye little-star!” says Pippa with a hug. They say their goodbyes and Tabbie goes to scout out her belongings, they had been tied with a pink bow. _‘Of course’ that was so like auntie Pip!_ She puts her stuff on the bottom bunk. “Oi that's my bed! You’ve got top!” came a voice behind her. “Oh I’m so sorry I assumed the top was taken” she answers, turning to find a girl who looks just like her but with longer hair and 'ordinary' clothes, staring right back at her.  
She blinks expecting the clone to do the same, as if this was some sort of prank, but she doesn’t move. “Hey Mills, you're missing the- woah!” In comes the other two campers. One with mousy curls and round glasses. The other had black hair that was tied in two bobbles at each side of her head. “You look the exact same!” one girl. Enid says in shock. “This is some sort of joke right?” both girls say at the same time and the clasp a hand over their mouths. “Freaky! How about Tab, you talk first and then Mill, you can follow” neither girl moves. “Oh..okay, sorry, this is as weird for you all as it is for me right? You didn’t put a clone spell on me?” Tabbie looks at the other girls wearily. “A what?” Mildred asks. To the three other girls are taken aback. “A cloning spell, surely you’ve had some sort of magical training?” Tabbitha couldn’t imagine a witch her age not having any training. “I- did you say magical?” oh no, this girl wasn’t a witch! “We'll explain later, firstly let's get this sorted, is there any chance you could be twins?” Maud asks, trying to be the sensible one. “I’ve never met my dad” they both say and then look at each other. “Well I guess that kills the twin theory…” Mildred says more confused. “Maybe not?” Tabbitha says slowly “witches have their ways around those sorts of things and I’ve always assumed I had two mums but I never asked…” both girls are holding half pieces of paper. “What's those?” Enid asks. “It’s a picture of my mum.” says Millie. “So is mine” adds Tabbie. Then they both have an idea. “If we both have half photos…” starts Tabbitha. “...we can join them together to see if they fit!” finishes Mildred. “If they’re not twins this is wack” Enid says in shock. So both girls look at their photos. Millie’s is of her mum, younger looking and sat outside a pub with “cat” at the end of its name. Tabbitha’s is of her mother outside the same place but with the first half of the name “the witches” on show. The pictures join together and the two girls look at each other in a mix of shock and joy. Time to hatch a plan.


	2. the plan

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The girls begin their training to become each other.

It was settled, they both wanted to meet their other mothers, so all they had to do was spend the next four weeks learning how to be each other. First things first, they had to look identical. “No! No way! There is no way in hell you are cutting my hair!” Mildred exclaims, outraged by the suggestion “you’ve got all that magicy stuff, just use a spell to grow yours!” she adds. “That takes too much time, I will just tell Mum that a friend at camp cut my hair for me, but you cannot go home to mother with long hair, She would kill me- well you, for using magic without proper supervision.” Tabbie says bluntly. Mildred closes her eyes, “okay just… do it” and when she opens her eyes again her hair is at her shoulders rather than down her back. “Perfect now let's wear the same outfit and practice our accents to see if Enid and Maud can tell who is who” Tabbitha says with a smile. The girls’ friends come back in the room. “Wow… I can’t tell you apart” says Enid. Maud looks closely “this one's Mil, she has that mischievous glint in her eye” the girl in question pulls out her necklace from under her top to reveal a ‘T’. “Wrong!” she says sticking out her tongue. “We got ‘em!” the actual Mildred says. “Sure did!” Tabbie answers in a perfect imitation. They were almost ready. 

“Now we need to know the personal details” Tabbie says pulling out a bright pink notebook from her bag, she had written everything she could think of that Millie might need to know. She had also conjured up a blue one so Millie could do the same. “So Pippa is mother’s best friend who lives with you?” Millie asks. Tabbie nods “kinda like Sarah is for mum” they were still talking as if they were each other. “Pippa love’s the colour pink and will greet you with something along the lines ‘well met little-star’ when she picks you up and will touch her forehead like so” Tabbie demonstrates. “She will be easy to spot, she is, as I said before, very fond of pink and looks like so” a photo of a pretty tan blonde woman is put in Millie’s hand. “When she greets you, you are expected to do the same back but instead of ‘little-star’ I’d call her ‘Pip’” she then goes on to explain mother and the do's and don'ts of living in a witches house. “Obviously Maud has offered to help you learn magic While I study ordinary things like a toast-maker” to this Millie laughs “toaster” she says and then goes to explain Sarah. “Now Sarah is a baker, she owns her own bakery in town, you help out sometime, she will probably bring you back a jam doughnut or cupcake, these are your favorite snacks!” she brings out a photo of a woman with thick red-brown hair and green eyes. “She likes to call you ‘squirt’ and will insist you are not eating enough, even if you eat mum out of house and home. She drives a deep blue car with ‘SLJ’ on the number plate, these are her initials” Millie then goes to explain how their mum is an artist and will take her into her studio for advice on what her work looks like, to which Millie always answers ‘fantastic’ or ‘the coolest’ because her mum is brilliant at what she does. She then makes a list of all the Tv shows that she will have missed and be desperate to catch up on, along with her favourite movies and books too. This give’s Tabbie more than enough to research while Mildred is out learning magic. Which to the ‘ordinary’, or not so, girls surprise, she can actually do. “Okay I think you are ready for the next step.” This was to call Pippa and see if she sounded convincing. “Well met little-star, I was wondering when you’d call” says a soft and delicate voice from the other end of the phone. “Well met Pip! Sorry I would have called much sooner it is just that the activities of camp have been keeping me… well occupied” Millie says looking at her twin for some sort of sign she did a good job, Tabbitha gives her a thumbs-up. She then goes to explain to Pippa the things she has been up to, with the occasional lie because she couldn’t really say ‘learning how to become my twin’ as that would kind of ruin the plan and mean that all the work they put in would be for nothing. Tabbie seemed Impressed, all they had to do now was swap suitcases and hope to god, or the grand wizard, that they didn't slip up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys,  
> I just want to thank you for the love I have been getting on this story!  
> It means the world.  
> thank you so much!


	3. meeting mum

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> this is the first of the 'meet the parents' chapters.

Four weeks flew by before Tabbie had time to adjust to them. She was finally going to meet Mum! From all the information Millie had given her, their mum sounded like a dream come true, she was fun and creative and hardly ever got strict or mad. She was the total opposite of mother and Tabbie couldn't wait to meet her. It was pick up day and all the campers were waiting for their parents to pick them up. Tabbie didn’t even have time to scout for the car before Sarah was walking up to her, just like her photo with a mess of dark red curls pulled into a ponytail that hung lazily to keep her hair out of her face. “Hey squirt, you’ve cut your hair?” Says the woman, sounding just how Tabbie imagined her too. “Very observant, as always Sarah” Tabbitha shot back, imitating Mildred’s slightly sarcastic attitude. “Alright little miss, why don’t you wait until we get in the car before you start hm?” She wasn’t annoyed; she even pulled Tabbie in for a hug, Tab sniffed slightly, trying to memorise the scent of perfume and baked goods.

  
“What are you doing?” Sarah asks, looking confused. “You smell like cakes and I’m just sooo very hungry” Tabbie says with a smile. “Let’s get in the car and I’ll fix that” and so they grab all Mildred’s stuff and drag to the car. In the car, as promised there is a white box filled with Sarah’s trademark doughnuts. Tabbie takes a bite, and honestly she can see why these are Millie’s favourite snacks. “Ummm” she says as the strange sugary sweetness explodes on her tongue. “You act like you haven’t eaten in weeks” Sarah says shaking her head but she wasn’t suspicious, this was very in character for Mildred.   
*****  
They park up and Tabbie finds her mum standing outside, already waiting for her to come back. She is just as Tabbie imagined, with a mane of blonde curls and the brightest of blue eyes, she was shorter than she imagined, Tabbie reached to her eye-line in height. She was dressed in a dark blue silk blouse and black fitted jeans, in a look that screamed 'classy but still had that artist flair'. “Millie-love! What happened to your hair?” asks Julie running in for a hug. “Well a friend at camp cut it for me? You’re not mad, right?” Tabbie is filled with sudden worry. “Mad? No chance! It looks great!” says the blonde, ruffling her hair slightly, to show her appreciation for the cut, to this Tabbie hugs her tighter, almost making Julie topple over. “Hey! What are you playing at?” she exclaims at her daughter in jest. “nothing, I’ve just missed you mum, really, really missed you” Tabbitha says breathing in her mum's unique scent, a flower garden mixed with an art studio. “Come on you funny little thing, let's get you settled back at home” Julie can sense that there is something different about her daughter, beyond the haircut, she just can’t figure out what.   
****  
The flat was just as Millie had said. It was a small space but it was full of lots of odd bits and bobs that gave away the fact the owner had money. Tabbie stands in the hallway, suddenly aware she has no idea where her room is. “Forgotten where your room is?” say Sarah walking up behind her. “Yeah funny thing that” Tabbie says. “I’ll show you, come on squirt” she leads her to her room and Tabbie gasps. The room was painted ocean blue and had posters and photos of all Millie’s favourite things pinned on a scrap board. “Wow” she whispers quietly, earning a concerned look from the other person in the room. “You act like you’ve never been in here before.” Tabbie looked at her and shrugged “I’ve just missed it I suppose, it’s easy to miss one's belongings after being away for such a while...is a saying that my-” she is cute off. “Friend at camps says? You seemed to have gotten awful close to this friend at camp” Sarah lifts an eyebrow, sceptically. “Almost like sisters… almost like twins” Tabbie says grinning to herself. “Hm okay” Sarah walks out of the room leaving Tabbie’s heart to beat. That too was close. The last thing she needed was to make Sarah suspicious when she had barely spent any time with mum.  
****  
The more time she did spend with Mum, the less she wanted to go home. She’d been their four days and it already felt like forever. She hoped Millie was having as much of a good time with Mother. That is when the call from Mildred happened. “Mills, what is it?” she said in a whisper, just to make sure no one heard, “oh Tab, we’ve got a problem, I think we need to switch back its Mother-” Tabbie had no intention of switching back. Not yet. “No we can’t switch yet! I… I still don’t know mum well enough!” she protested. “But this is an SOS!” Millie complained. _“Magic clear as skies in summer, please let this phone line buffer”_ Tabbie whispers the spell softly and the phone line starts breaking up. “A what- Mill-? You’re breaking up- I’ve got to go!” Tabbitha puts the phone down and goes to walk down stairs. “Not so fast, come on we're going back in your room to talk” Sarah is standing right outside the door. “Uh oh” Tabbie says, her heart pounding.  
****  
“You're not Millie, are you?” Sarah says slowly, as if trying to process what's happening.  
“That would be correct…” Tabbie says hanging her head. “So that would make you… Tabbie?” Sarah has tears in her eyes. “Correct again” Tabbie says looking up a little. “There you guys are! You’ve been in here for ages” Julie comes into the room, she looks from best friend to daughter, '' Sarah, why are you looking at her like that?” she asks. Tabbie looks at the red haired woman, wide eyed. “Looking at her like what? This is how I always look at her! Ever since you brought her home, tiny little thing in that white cotton blanket, It has been almost twelve years and this is how I always look at her” this doesn’t help Julie in thinking that nothing is wrong but she goes out the room anyway. “You better tell her soon, I’m not very good at lying to your mum, oh I can’t believe you're here!” It goes from a serious request to a hug. “I will… I just need to call Millie” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In my mind Sarah is played by Alex Kingston but I am curious, who would you cast as her?  
> as always thank you so much for reading!


	4. mother

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> the second half of the 'meet the parents' chapters

Millie’s stomach was tied in knots as she awaited for the pink car at the camp parking lot, what if Pip saw right through her? She had been convincing on the phone but in person was different. “Little-star!” she hears and she turns to find Pippa standing, dressed in a light pink blouse and dark magenta pencil skirt, by a bright pink car, as promised. “Could you get any more pink Pips?” the young girl says with a sigh. “Is that a challenge?” the blonde says with a smile. “So anything has happened while I was gone?” Millie asks, Pippa loves a good gossip. “Oh you’ve missed a lot young Tab but I’ve been sworn to secrecy” comes the answer. “Mother trusts you to keep a secret? Wow” secret keeping was not one of Pippa’s best skills. “Please tell me! Please… you can either tell me mother's secret or you can tell me about my dad!” Millie had to admit she was having fun. “You haven't got a dad.” Pippa says quickly. “Then tell me about my other mother!” Millie says. “Oh Tab, you smart cookie, I can’t tell you about your Mum either… another secret I promised I wouldn't share.” Millie had got her right where she wanted her. “Well I won’t stop bugging you until you tell me one or the other… your choice” Pippa sighed, this was going to be a long car journey. “Your mother is engaged” Millie's jaw went slack. It had only been a month.   
****  
“Tabbitha, is that you?” Hecate calls as she hears the front door close. “Yes mother! it's me!” Millie calls back. “Come into the the first lounge, I have something to talk to you about” 

The Hardbrooms lived in a massive house, Millie was sure that her flat would fit in just the ‘first lounge’ alone. The House was not only massive but old and had been in the family for ages. Hecate was sometimes referred to as ‘the Hardbroom heiress’ because she had inherited all her father's land once he died, which was most of New Hollow, the small witches town where they lived. Millie was shocked to find out that her mother was the richest witch to this date. Of course Mum had money but she had a preference for smaller houses, she was clumsy and got lost easily. So the idea of a ‘first lounge’ baffled Millie a bit, how many lounges did a person really need? “Coming!” she called trying to find her way to this lounge. When she got there she was greeted by the sight of her mother doing paperwork. She was tall and thin with long dark hair in a bun on the top of her head. Millie looked at her own hair and thought about her own height, she was almost taller than mum now and still growing, suddenly it all made sense. “That took you a while, everything alright?” her mother looked up from what she was reading with an arched eyebrow and a small smile. “I am very much adequate mother, the house just seems bigger than I recall. '' Millie says with a copycat smirk. “Okay then, how about you sit down and tell me all about this camp? Did you make any friends?” Hecate says, no sign of the dreaded ‘strictness’ Tabbitha mentioned. Millie guessed that this was because she had missed her daughter. “Camp was great! I made some really great friends! Anyway what did you want to tell me?” she says hoping that the brunette woman looking at her will say that she is not actually getting engaged and it is all some kind of prank. “Why don’t you find Morgana and cuddle up first?”   
Morgana is the family cat. So Mildred goes on a hunt for the cat and finds her lazing on a chair is the kitchen, she hisses when Millie approaches. “Oh dear that's odd, Morgana usually only hisses at strangers'' Pippa says emerging from somewhere else in the house. “I must just...smell different?” Millie says with a shrug going back out of the kitchen. “Where’s Morgana?” Hecate asks in a tone that almost sounds shocked. “She… was sleeping and I didn’t want to wake her so I came back catless” Mildred thinks and then answers. “Well that is..most odd but I suppose a plausible response” Hecate takes her reading glasses off her nose. “I wanted to tell you that I am getting engaged and you are going to meet Astora, my fiance, in three days” Mildred wants to scream, this wasn't what she wanted to happen and she needed to call Tabbie. Instead she smiles, “where will I be meeting her?” she says in a voice that gives nothing away, “ at the broom and cauldron hotel, people in this town always has a habit of calling things the most...unsavoury of names” Millie smiles and excuses herself.   
***   
“No wait! I-” the connection of the phone call is gone. Millie sighs and turns around to find Pippa stood in the middle of the room. “Gosh! Pippa you scared the pants offa me!” She jumps. “I- what?” the blonde asks confused. “How long have you been standing there?” Millie asks guiltily. “Long enough to confirm some suspicions I had . Firstly you do not know your way around your own house… then Morgana goes nowhere near you and now you are using odd expressions. You are not Tabbitha” one big problem had just got worse. “That might be the case.” Millie says in defeat. “That would make you Mildred.” Millie looks at her and then at the floor “yeah I guess it does” she says. Pippa stood motionless for a moment. “That would mean that Tabbitha is with Julie?” she says slowly. “Yeah” Millie had blown it! “Ooh how exciting!” That wasn't the response she was expecting and then she remembers that Pippa loves both drama and romance novels. She was probably a lot better of an ally than Sarah in this case. “Are you going to tell?” Millie asks quietly. “No… I don't think I will” and then the phone rang.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know Hecate getting rush engaged is really out of character, sorry about that, I realise now that Julie would of probably worked better with that story line but c'est la vie!   
> Thank you for reading!


	5. Blown covers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The girls put their plan to stop their Mother's engagement into action and Julie tries to pluck up the courage to see Hecate again.

“Mills…” Tabbie answers the phone   
“I need to tell you something” they both say at the same time. They both go to explain how their covers have been blown and Millie explains their mothers engagement and how they need mum to come to New Hollow to stop it. “If we can get them together again they will remember how much they loved each other and hopefully get back together” was Millie's argument. Tabbitha sighed “I guess I have to come clean then” she ends the call and walks down the hall. Julie is sat on a call to one of her art galleries. Tabbie sits, hugging a cushion “ah Bon, au revoir monsieur, je vous reparlerai plus tard.” she says in fluent french ending her call. “Hello Millie-love, what can I do for you?” Tabbie looks at her feet. “Well mum, we need to go somewhere.” she says. Julie looks at her confused “go somewhere? Where, Millie?” Tabbitha buries her head into the cushion in her hand “to go get Millie!” she says as part of her explanation. “Oh okay I see and where might she be?” Julie is still confused but has decided to play along. “In New Hollow with Hecate Hardbroom” Tabbie muffles. Julie's mouth forms a perfect O, “but… if Millie is in NH then that would make you… Tabbie?” the realisation hit her like a brick. How had she not noticed? How had she had her other daughter in front of her this whole time and not figured it out? “I- well- I- Just give me a hug!” she says finally as the emotions hit and she pulls her daughter in for a hug once again but a very different one. “Sarah get in here now!” to this Sarah pops her head around the door “Hey Jules” she says innocently. “Don't ‘hey Jules’ me, you knew! Since I walked in that time and you were both acting weird. You didn’t tell me that I had the wrong daughter and now after eleven and a half years of trying to get over her, I’m going to have to see Hecate again and god! I have to see Hecate again! I can’t, I just can’t! The last time I saw her we had that row and I threw all her stuff out the windows and- and” she stopped for breath. “Almost knocked her out with that massive spell book you threw at her?” Sarah said with a grin, this was not helpful. “Oh your right! I bet she hasn’t forgotten that, or the fact I told her that I never wanted to see her again… or even be associated with anyone of her kind... oh God! I bet she still hates me…. I mean I’d hate me if I was her….Sarah what if she still hates me?” Julie went from annoyed to exasperated and then filled with despair all in a matter of minutes. To this her best friend tuts “Julie that woman idolised you, I doubt she would hate you” she says in a comforting tone. “She never came after me when I left, she probably thought I didn’t want her to, and she signed the papers to divorce me, instead of trying to win me back. That doesn’t exactly scream eternal love to me” Julie says sarcastically. “You’ve had your nose in too many books, Hecate probably didn’t know what to do, she wasn’t always the best at reading people and as for not coming after you and signing those papers, she thought that's what you needed and wanted, How was she supposed to know you wanted her to do the opposite of what you said? I’d bet she is just as nervous to see you as you are her.” Julie thought it over, Sarah was right, she had been so unreasonable back then. “Alright Tabbie, when have you and your sister planned that we switch you back” she had seen enough Rom-coms to know where this was heading and she wasn’t sure how she felt about it. “In three days at the ‘Broom and Cauldron’” says the girl, remembering what Millie had said just hours before. The Broom and Cauldron was almost next to The Witches Cat… Julie felt her stomach twist. This was all too much and it pushed her right out of every comfort zone she had built in the last eleven or so years. “Think of it as a birthday present.” Sarah suggested. In three days it was the sixth of august, Her 45th birthday, she’d forgotten all about it… this was just perfect. Her life was turning into a movie… one she really didn’t want to star in. “Why have you done this to me? Why have you both done this to me?” Julie sighs “no It isn’t your fault...it was beyond stupid for us to seperate you” Julie was just realsing now how heartbreaking it must have been, to find out you had a twin and never knew, it must of felt like they’d lost their other half, she didn’t need to imagine what that felt like. 

***  
It hadn’t taken much persuasion to get Pippa in on the plan. “So you have planned for Julie to go to the broom on the day that the _’ happy couple’_ will be there?” she said ‘happy couple’ as if they were anything but. Millie nods “which is also, conveniently, August sixth, Julie’s birthday, because you want to get your mums back together?” she had practically guessed the whole plan. “That is pretty much it Pips” to this the blonde smiled “I have never seen Hiccup happier than when she was with Julie, I’m in” and with that Pippa single handedly managed to make sure that Hecate thought she had the right daughter and did not guess a thing. If Mille was asked a question she couldn’t answer, Pippa would answer for her, if they practiced a spell Tabbie had mastered but Millie was hopeless at, Pippa would finish it for her. Millie was really coming to appreciate Pippa, without her Help the plan would have gone pear shaped. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey Guys,  
> sorry that the update is later than usual, also the next chapter will be mostly flashback so... that's exciting right?  
> thank you so much for reading!


	6. The Witches Cat

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Julie in back in New Hollow and remembers the first time she was there.

“Nope, I can’t do this!” it was the evening of the fifth of august and Julie is pacing around her living room “I am not prepared for this! No one ever tells you that when you get divorced you will spend almost twelve years attempting to get over your ex only to have to see her again to swap your twin daughters back” more pacing. “Well I don’t think yours is a very common scenario Jules” Sarah says with a laugh. “I suppose… but why couldn't she just poof in here and we’d swap them? Why do I have to go back to New Hollow? The people there hated me!”   
*******  
This was not true, New Hollow hated most non-magical people, mostly because of historical prejudice, but the people missed Julie, especially with word of the engagement. Astoria Dragonglass was known for being something of a ‘ gold digger’ amongst witches and being just Hecate’s type would make it all the more easy for her to get everything and anything she wanted from her. Hecate would say she did not have such a thing as a _‘type’_ but even Millie had to admit, this woman in front of her looked like a younger version of her mum and Marilyn Monroe combined, only with less class and glamour. She had the same thick light blonde curls and blue eyes. “Hecate there you are, I was just wondering where you got to baby” says ‘Marylin’, this was going to be Millie’s nickname for her. The blonde pulls her mother in for the sloppiest and most disgusting kiss Millie had ever seen, It was nowhere near as glamorous as something from a movie. “ You must be Tabbitha?” Marilyn asks looking at Millie, who had to force herself to smile “yes I am” she says sweetly. “Well I’m Astoria, I imagine your mother has told you all about me” she says as if she was the centre of the universe. “Not quite, I thought I’d leave you something to bond on today” says Hecate with an embarrassed smile. “Don’t you worry, we’ll have plenty to talk about” when Astoria turns to Millie and smiles, she looks like a shark about to swallow her whole, Where was mum? She should be here soon.

Julie was in New Hollow, for the first time in almost twelve years and it looked no different, it looked the exact same as it did when she first entered the small town, twenty years the previous.  
 _*twenty years ago*_  
Julie had just returned home after backpacking and traveling across Europe when she finally decided to cross the forest at the edge of her hometown and see what was beyond it. She had made a bet to herself five years ago, on her twentify birthday, that if she had traveled the world by the time she was twenty five, she would cross this damned forest and a bet's a bet. So here she was, the other side of the ‘uncrossable forest’, as it was nicknamed back then, and she had to admit she was disappointed to find a small town much like her own. Well apart from the fact that everything here had daft names. For example the pub was called ‘the Witches Cat’ which Julie found odd but she thought after all that hiking through the forest she deserved a drink. The pub looked pretty normal, on the outside, from within it was anything but and it wasn’t just the fact the glasses tended to float to the dishwasher or that drinks appeared out of thin air, although that shocked Julie more than enough, it was the whole atmosphere of the place. It felt… magical. She must have looked as lost as she felt because a silky and yet also husky voice says “you’re not from here” it wasn’t even a question and that made Julie nervous. The voice belonged to a tall woman dressed in all black with dark hair and darker eyes. She was beautiful in a strange and somewhat enchanting way. “No I’m not, can you really tell I’m from up north befo’e I open my mouth?” her accent was thicker back then. “No… that's not exactly what I meant” says the mysterious stranger. Well she probably wasn’t the stranger here, Julie was and she definitely looked out of place, everyone who occupied the pub were all dressed in long, dark and loose fitting clothes, aside from one woman in a tight and bright pink dress. “Well why don’t I come and sit with you and the pink woman who is waving us over and you can explain whatcha meant, eh?” Julie asks boldly, this woman was mysterious and unlike anyone she’d ever seen before, there was something about her that made the blonde’s heart race. “I am not entirely opposed to the idea, I suppose” her accent was something Julie couldn’t quite place, it was clear and crisp and she supposed it would be labeled _‘posh’_ but there was more to it then that. “Well lead the way mysterious stranger” she says with a grin. “Hecate, my name is Hecate” the woman says out of politeness. “Ah, I thought you looked witchy!” Julie says as if triumphant. Hecate almost chokes on air, “I beg your pardon?” she asks, slightly taken off guard. “Sorry I’ve just got back from Greece, Hecate is the greek goddess of witchcraft and magic” Julie explains. Hecate still looks stunned. “I’m Julie by the way, forgot to say didn’t I?” she flashes a lopsided grin at the other woman, this does not help in the slightest and seems to make her even more panicked. They get to the table, and the blonde woman in pink looks Julie up and down “you are not from here… how very exciting” she says, this annoys Julie slightly. “Alright Hecate, time to spill. Why do you all seem to know I am not from your side of that damned forest?” she says in a raised whisper. “you crossed the uncrossable forest!” both women say in shock. To this Julie looks confused. “Yeah? Why’s that come as such a shock?” the two friends exchange glances. “Someone without magic isn’t supposed to be able to do that.” Hecate says, confusion and slight awe colouring each note of her voice. “Without magic eh? Are you takin’ the mickey outta me fo’ the witch comment?” words seemed to come out of Julie's mouth but her company had no idea what they meant. “Oh my, you aren’t jokin’ are you?” she says looking at the astonished faces. “No, I can assure you that I am not really one to joke.” Hecate says in a serious, or maybe it was just her normal, tone. “Yeah Hiccup is not very fond of laughter. Also I’m Pippa and I think we should apologise, this is probably all very confusing” The blonde witch says in a tone of somewhat pity. “I think it makes sense, I mean the drinks are floating about an’ appearing and disappearing on their own an’ well this one here is so bewitchingly beautiful that she was either some form of magical or just bloody lucky” the last bit seems to slip off Julie tongue before she could stop it. Brown eyes meet with blue and the darker haired woman blushes. “you … think that I am ‘bewitchingly beautiful’?” her tone was now pure shock. “Well I didn't invite myself over here for a drink for not’ing!”the non-magical woman says with a short wink and a laugh. That was it, the day that started this whole thing and would in five years result in a marriage and three years after that end in divorce.   
_*end of flashback*_


	7. The Broom and Cauldron

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hecate sees Julie and doesn't know what to do

Hecate was walking down into the lobby, searching for where her child had got to, when something made her stop. In the lobby, at the reception desk was a woman, with wild dirty blonde curls dressed in a white shirt, blue jeans and a cardigan. Hecate blinked in disbelief, this woman looked just like...no it couldn’t be but then she turned and there she was, Julie Hubble. What in the name of all things magical was Julie Hubble doing back in New Hollow? Why was she here of all places and why today? The brunette witch is frozen with an expression of pure horror when Julie waves at her. A nice, friendly wave, Hecate releases the breath she is holding and transfers away, abandoning her search for Tabbitha as well as her conflicting feeling. “Pippa?” She knocks on her best friend's hotel room door. “Hold on Hiccup!” comes the bright, soprano chirp from inside. She waits counting the seconds as well as her breathing “fifty one, fifty two, fifty-” Pippa opens the door and motions for her oldest friend to come inside. “So what’s bothering you?” the blonde asks with a knowing look. “How did you-” Hecate goes to ask. “You only knock like that if you are in distress” Pippa says in a flat, for her, tone. “Well…. Julie Hubble is here, now and I’m not sure… how- to respond, I think it's some sort of sign” Hecate stumbles on the words, she was never very good at this sort of thing. “A sign? A sign for what Hiccup?”Hecate sighs and looks at the blonde “a sign that I am not… supposed to get engaged? A sign that I am not over Julie?” The brunette talks slowly as if she is trying to process what she is trying to say. “Well, well done Hiccup you are officially the last one to know” Pippa says nudging the woman lightly with a grin plastered on her face. “That is a ridiculous notion Pipsqueak and I am sure not everyone knows” But she blushes all the same. She is nervous and confused, she had spent the most part of almost twelve years hiding emotions, all emotions and here they were resurfacing in the most uncomfortable quantities. “Well I would love to sit and help you with your woman woes but I actually need your help!” Pippa says trying to lighten the mood. “How can I be of assistance” the dark witch says flatly. Pippa’s face lights up and she clicks her fingers, she is changed into a pink polka dot bikini. “Does this look okay? Is it too exposing? Does my chest look flat?” Pippa fired questions before Hecate even noticed she’d changed. “You look… lovely, what is the occasion?” the brunette asks, she has no idea where her friend would need such an outfit. “I’m going on a date! In a hot tub?” says the blonde. Which makes the brunette look at her confused “a what?” she says. “A date Hiccup, you remember what that is, right?” Pippa says with a giggle. “You know very well that I meant a hot tub Pippa!” Hecate exclaims. “Yes I did, but I honestly have no idea. Guess I’m about to find out” with that she was gone. Hecate found herself sat, alone, with still no idea of what to do about her Julie Hubble problem.   
*****  
Julie walks back into her hotel room to find both her daughters sat on one of the beds. “One of you… no both of you, because at this precise second I don’t who is who, has a hell of a lot of explaining to do!” Julie’s voice was raised but she still wasn’t quite angry. Both of the girls look at each other. “About what mum?” they say at the same time. “One of you said that Hecate Hardbroom knew I was coming, but the Hecate I just saw looked at me as if I was some sort of ghost of relationship past!” she can’t believe she’d made a fool of herself because she listened to a couple of tweens. “Stay out of trouble, I am going to drag Sarah to the bar.” she says in somewhat desperate need for a drink. _*knock*_ she knocked on the door to find Sarah, fully made up but in a swimming costume. “Well where are you off to then?” she asks with a sly grin. The redhead blushes, “I thought I would show that pretty blonde friend of your witch what a hot tub was” she says, absolutely smitten, she was going on a romantic hot tub date with Pippa Pentangle, Julie was so happy for her best mate that she forgot to correct that Hecate was no longer ‘her’ anything. At least someone was benefiting from this whole debacle. If only it was that easy for her. 


	8. The Ex-Wife

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Julie runs into a pretty blonde woman at the hotel bar and agrees to paint her and her fiancé.

Julie was about her third drink in when she feels a tap on her shoulder, she turns to find a pretty, young and very blonde woman looking at her with shock and intrigue. “I’m so sorry to bother you but are you Julie Hubble?” the woman asks in awe. “Thats me, what can I do for you?” Julie says mustering a smile. “Well I’m a giant fan of yours, as far as ordinary art goes yours always seems the most magical” Julie felt her cheeks reden at the compliment, even after all this time she was shocked people liked her art. “Thank you” she says. “I was wondering if I could ask you to do a portrait for me? You see, I've just recently got engaged and I would simply love for one of your paintings to hang in my new house” This woman looked happy at the thought that Julie couldn’t have said no if she tried. “Of course if you give me a name I’ll get my daughter to mirror you later and we can discuss the details.” she says in her most ‘professional’ voice. “Astoria Dragonglass” says the younger woman. “Alright Astoria, I guess we’ll be seeing more of each other. you tell this fiance that they are lucky to have you, yeah?” Julie smiles as she watches the other woman walk away, in the mess of all this it was nice to know she had a project to keep her mind off things. 

****  
Hecate was sitting on a bench outside the hotel, looking up at the night sky. Astrology seemed a welcome distraction from all the complicated details of her current situation. She gets so lost in each constellation that tonight's sky brings that she doesn't even realise her fiance is sat next to her, smelling of perfume and slight alcohol. “Guess what baby?” Hecate's head snaps up, she hated the endearment ‘baby’ but she didn’t want to tell this woman that. “I honestly cannot guess” she says, still gazing at the sky, the leo constellation was most visible tonight, the leo, the lion. All these things reminded her of Julie. “I found someone to paint our portrait, you know the one that I’ve been wanting to hang in the master bedroom?” _‘where on the earth had she found a painter at this time at night? It was almost 1AM!’_ Hecate thinks to herself “Ah you have? that's nice dear” she hums only half listening. She expected that some poor drunken soul had been ployed into agreeing to do the painting. She wasn’t far off. 

****   
Sarah had come to see how Julie was the next morning. It was obvious that her night had been amazing. “Hey Jules, how are we feeling?” she asks in a tone that was much happier than she usually was anywhere near this time in the morning. “Not as good as you are, I imagine? How was the date with ‘Miss Pretty in Pink’?” Julie asks teasingly, the red haired woman blushes slightly. “It was... this sounds so gross and like something you’d say but… magical” she says cringing slightly. “Oooh someone’s in loveeeeee” Julie teases earning a pillow in the face. “Shut up! I wouldn’t go that far…. It was only the first date” but she smiles as if many dates could follow. “Aw come on let me relish the fact someone's love life is going well!” Julie says a little sadly. “Ah so you didn’t meant a new flame at the bar last night then?” Sarah asks. “No but I did find a job” the blonde says with a small smile. “Only you could find a painting gig at odd hours in the morning” Sarah says with an eye roll. “Hey! It's nothing dodgy!! The woman seemed well decent!” Julie says defensively. “Ooh she seemed decent eh? Was she your type?” Sarah asks, trying to get more information out of her friend. “My what? I don’t have a type and no I didn’t like her like that” Julie huffs. “Don't have a type? You mad? You always fall for them dark haired and mysterious” Julie thought for a moment, maybe Sarah was right, all her college boyfriends were dark haired and lead singers in some rock band or other and she had definitely had her fair share of goth girlfriends throughout university. There was also Hecate, who definitely fit the description of _‘dark haired and mysterious’_ she sighed at the thought. “She was blonde and curly haired, not at all my _‘type’_ as you put it” Julie says with a thin smile. She couldn’t think about Hecate right now, she just had to focus on her project. She was meeting the couple tomorrow morning to talk about the painting they wanted. meanwhile Sarah connects the dots in her head, Blonde with curly hair? She might not have been Julie's type but this mystery woman was definitely someones… then she remembers what she had heard on the girls phone call, the one that seemed like a lifetime ago. Could this woman be Hecate’s fiance?  
*****  
“Oh look here she is!” Astoria grabs the brunette and makes her turn her attention to whoever she was talking about. Hecate’s heart sinks in her chest, “Julie?” she says, sounding breathless. “Hecate?” Julie quizzes in a similar tone. Astoria looks from woman to woman, before finally addressing the obvious elephant in the room. “You- you know each other?” she asks slowly. Julie laughs nervously “you could say that” she shifted her gaze as if embarrassed. The taller blonde watches as the other two women avoid her eye. “Okay I need to know the story! Hecate, Baby! How come you have never mentioned you know Julie Hubble?” it seems as if she can’t decide if she’s more shocked or excited. _‘Baby’_ rings through Julie's mind. No, it can't be-there is no way- “I’mtheexwife” she blurts out without attempting to stop. “Oh I am so sorry! If I had any idea I would never have asked- are you sure it won’t be too much for you? To paint us? You know with me living the happy life you could have had?” and that is when the realisation shatters all Julie’s hopes like they were fragile glass. _‘How could I have been so stupid?’_ she curses herself. Of course Hecate had moved on! What did she expect? She was the Ex-Wife, nothing more, not anymore. it was all her own fault she had done this to herself. She had put herself in this position. The Ex-Wife. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys,  
> I'm so sorry this update has taken so long! and thank you so much for you patience!


	9. Iris

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Julie and Hecate couldn't get more awkward if they tried.

_*knock*_ “Pippa?” Hecate asks once again at her best friends door. “Come in Hiccup!” comes the reply. And just like that Hecate found herself once again sat at the desk in the blonde’s room, trying to figure out what to do. “I… I am in a constant state of confusion Pipsqueak. I need your help, what would you do?” She asks folding a refolding the same fluffy pink blanket she was holding asif she couldn’t quite get it neat enough. “That is an easy question but I’m going to let you figure out the answer” Pippa replies. The brunette looks at her with an expression like a sailor scanning through mist. “Do you think Astoria loves you?” the blonde asks rather bluntly. Hecate thinks for a moment “I- she can be rather affectionate towards me” she answers, still folding the blanket. “When she wants something…” Pippa adds trailing off,“Okay let me try again, do you really love Astoria or does she just remind you of… you know who” The blonde talks softly as if trying to get to the point but also dancing around the topic. “I- she- I do not think I am able to talk about this right now, sorry Pip” and with that she transfers away.  
*****  
While Hecate battled with her emotions, Millie was set to be ‘bonding’ with Astoria. “So Astoria, Astra? Tori. What do you see in my mother?” They were sitting by the pool. The blonde woman scoffs “well, you're mother has… an interesting character, she’s mysterious and serious and the type of person I always hoped to marry” it was Millie’s turn to scoff, she was surprised that ‘rich’ hadn’t been said. “Aren’t you a bit young to become a mother? You’re like what, thirty? Thirty two?” the girl asks with false innocence. “I’m twenty seven, and I love your mother okay? So I am willing to ‘mother’ you, if that's what it takes.” Mildred had underestimated this woman, she would do anything to get her hands on the Hardbroom fortune. “Whatever you say…. But just so you know, she will never love you as much as she did my mum” This is Mildred’s last card. “You know? I’m feeling rather thirsty, why don’t you grab me a drink, Hm Tabbitha?” Astoria sounds annoyed. At this moment the actual Tabbie walks past. “Hey Tori” she says with a smile. “What are you doing here? I thought I asked for a drink.” The woman replies looking up from her copy of _‘witching hour’_ the latest witchy romance novel. “Here's your drink” Millie says, coming up from behind the pair. Astoria gasps, looking from left to right. “There are two of you?” she exclaims in sudden shock. “There you are Millie-love!” Juile says crossing the tiled floor. “Ms Hubble! You have twins?” Julie looks down slightly, noticing the blonde on the sunbed. “Uh that I do, Hecate never mentioned it?” she says in a tone that could be somewhat triumphant, but uncertain as to why. “No she mentioned that about as much as she did you” comes the huffed response. “Well why don’t you take some time to get to know both the girls while I go and find their mother?” Julie says with a smile, she looks at her daughters “behave you two” she says rather sternly as she walks away.   
******  
Hecate was sat at the same bench as she had been the night previous humming the tune to the only ordinary song she knew. Iris, it was called, by a band with a name so ridiculous she couldn’t recall it. It had been playing at the first ordinary bar Julie had taken her to and it had been the song they had their first dance to. The lyrics floated through her head.   
  
_‘And I'd give up forever to touch you_  
_'Cause I know that you feel me somehow_  
_You're the closest to heaven that I'll ever be_  
_And I don't want to go home right now’_  
All she could seem to think about was Julie, what had happened between them and how she regretted it. “Is Missus _‘oh so magical’,_ humming?” Hecate knew that taunting voice anywhere. She looked up to find the face of the one ghost of her past she couldn't let go of. Julie Hubble. “I might have been so lost in thought it had inclined me to ‘hum’; yes” she replied feeling her throat dry up on the words. “Well, well, well colour me shocked, you really have changed haven’t you” comes another tease. “Hmpth, I suppose I have” Hecate didn’t sound all too happy about the fact. “So…” Julie started but trailed off. “I need to talk to you” they both said suddenly. Julie laughs at this while Hecate looks surprised. “You go first” the blonde says, tucking a stray curl behind her ear. “Well we… all those years ago, it- It was all so sudden. I guess I wanted to know, what happened? Between us? Why did our relationship cease in the way it did?” brown eyes meet with blue for a second before both look away embarrassed. “Well… our relationship as a whole was sudden” the blonde starts “and we were both so young, we had no idea what we wanted, I guess I thought If I left, it would give us time to figure it all out, and I also thought that maybe if I ran you’d come after me…” she trails off awkwardly looking at a beam of sunlight that is reflecting on the floor. “I- Julie I had no idea that's what you wanted if I had I would-” Hecate goes to explain. “It’s all a bit too late now, I shouldn’t have blown up the way I did but we both had our tempers back then, We should focus less on the past and more on the girls, what are we going to do with them?” the question hung in the air. “Yes well I guess we cannot keep them separated now they have met and I’m assuming that Mildred cannot keep living a life without magic…” Hecate had only recently figured out that she had had the wrong daughter. Julie Didn’t even think about the possibility of Millie having magic, until now. “Oh my god you’re right! I can’t expect Mil to live without magic! Oh Cate what are we going to do!” Julie sighs loud and harshly as if all the things she had been holding on to began to unwind. “I- We- I don’t know” Hecate’s voice cracks slightly. “We’ll have to send her to Cackles in the Autumn,” Julie says in a hushed whisper, as if to hide the emotion in her voice. “Are you positively certain?” She knows how lonely it can be for a parent, especially a single parent, with a child at boarding school. “No I am not certain but… it’s what I need to do, she needs to learn how to embrace who she is” Hecate smiles, Julie was always so brave and selfless. “I will keep an eye on her and… while she is away I’m sure Pippa wouldn’t mind the company back at the manor, if you’d like to stay or even visit” words seem to fall out of her mouth before she could stop them, why did this woman have such an effect on her? She was just one ordinary woman who should not be able to make Hecate’s stomach fizzle as if she is casting a spell, but oh how she did. “I-I’m not sure that Cruella De Vill would appreciate that.” Julie jokes. “Did- did you just refer to my fiance as a puppy-skinning diva?” Hecate was supposed to sound mock-serious but she laughed, pleasantly surprised by the woman's boldness. “Oh did I say that aloud?” The blonde says covering her mouth as if innocent and for a couple of moments it was as if they had traveled back in time, back to the late 90’s when their relationship was young and new. This was until footsteps jolted them uncomfortablely back to their present and the moment was over. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys!  
> Quick question, who do you think would play Astoria? I didn't use an actress to base her off like I did for other original characters and I'm curious. also if you don't know the song I reference it's called Iris and it's by a band called the GooGoo Dolls, I recommend giving it a listen, though I prefer the sleeping with sirens cover!  
> as always thankyou so much for reading :)


	10. When everything feels like the movies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter goes from awkward to cute to awkward again and I'm not even sorry about it.

“Mum! Mother!” Both eleven year olds came bounding towards their parents, who were looking at each other in a promising way, that was until the girls appeared, then they shuffled awkwardly. “Millie-love! Tabbie-dear! What are you doing here?” Julie asks, her cheeks carrying the blush of a woman caught red handed. “We ditched Marylin and came to find you because we are taking you to dinner!” Millie announced, or maybe it was Tabbie? Julie wasn't certain. “Taking us- whatever are you two talking about?” Hecate asks, looking the definition of bamboozled. “No time to talk!” each twin grabs the hand of a parent and drags them to a surprisingly empty, Witches Cat. Inside it was decorated in the old interior of the pub and there were none of the locals hanging about, in fact there wasn’t a soul beyond Pippa, Sarah and them. “What’s going on?” Julie asks somewhat hit with dejavu as she looks around. “Well we're treating you to an exclusive meal… for two” one girl says with a smile. “For two- oh” it clicked. “You understand what’s happenin’ right?” the blonde turns to the shocked looking brunette. “I- I believe they are recreating the night we met” Hecate respondes. They sit and watch their daughter disappear. “Good evening, I’m Pippa and I will be your waitress tonight” the blonde witch was dressed in a pink waitress getup with a notepad at hand. “And I’m Sarah and I will be your chief” her auburn curls were clasped in a giant clip to her head. “Now here is a complimentary bottle of something bubbly. Please feel free to drink as much as you like, in the hopes you will get horrendously drunk and not blame this lovely lady and myself for shamelessly following the instructions of a couple of pre-teens” Pippa brings out a, unsurprisingly, pink bottle of champagne and looks at the red haired woman with a shy smile. The sat couple look at each other and laugh lightly. “You both knew what was going on? What am I askin’ ‘course you did” Julie shakes her head but grins at the other two women all the same.   
*****  
The lights were dimmed so only candlelight had a chance to weave its way through the blonde’s golden locks, her eyes seemed a brighter blue in the glow, that's all Hecate noticed as the music started playing. Iris. it felt just like it had all those years ago. Just like an old fim.   
_‘you can't fight the tears that ain't coming_  
_Or the moment of truth in your lies_  
_When everything feels like the movies_  
_Yeah you bleed just to know you're alive'_

  
Both women looked at each other, it was as if they could try and kid themselves that too much time hadn’t passed and they could just carry on where they left off all those years ago, they might, but Julie looked at Hecate and sighed lightly, she was a taken woman. “That dress looks amazing” the brunette husks melting those icy blue eyes with her gaze. Julie almost felt herself swoon, almost, but no she couldn't do that, she had to keep it together. “Lets not, lets just have this dinner, for the kids eh? And then we can go back to how it was…” she says, her heart breaking slightly on the words. she didn't want it to have to be like this but, life was no movie, they couldn't just forget the last eleven years. “Yes, I’m sure that would be wise” Hecate agrees to hide her own heartbreak. All the time that had passed became quickly apparent as the dinner went from pleasant to forced. Both women suddenly couldn’t wait for this weekend to be over.  
*****  
It was finally time for Julie and Mildred to go back to their side of the forest when both girls came out of the house wearing the exact same black robe. “Millie, go get changed. This is beyond not funny” Julie says in a stern tone, but excitement bubbled in the pit of her stomach all the same. “That’s a no can do mum” one girls says looking at the other. “Yeah mum, we have a proposition first.” says the other with a grin. “Oh do you now?” Hecate says with a raise of her brow. “Yes, we want to go to the Hubble cabin, the four of us. As a family. After this we will tell you who is who and you can go back to your lives” Julie smiles, every year, the week before the school term started, she took Mildred to a cabin she had bought in France and they skied . “And what if we say no?” she asks plainly. “Then you'll never know if you took the right daughter back” says one twin. “Wouldn’t that just be heartbreaking? Taking one twin to live the wrong life?” adds the other for effect. Julie looks at Hecate, she had to give it to her daughters, they really knew how to scheme and get their own way, “if this is what the girls want then… I am not against the idea” the brunette says slowly, leaving the ball totally in Julie’s court. She looks at both her daughters, it was hopeless trying to guess who was who, “fine, but you better stay true to your promise” she huffs lightly. Both twins look at each other with success. They were going skiing together as a family.   


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> does the trip go well? you'll have to find out if the next chapter!  
> Thank you so much for reading and also thank you for all the lovely comments


	11. A trip for four

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> the girls play a couple of harmless pranks on their 'step-mum-to-be'

All was packed and ready to go, the girl's plan had worked perfectly… with one exception, Astoria. “Catie, baby what's all this?” she asks as she approaches the vehicle they had hired. Hecate goes to speak but Julie jumps in “the girls want us to go on a trip as a family, but I think you should go instead of me, I would hate to intrude, it’d be a bit odd wouldn’t it? The Ex-Wife going on a romantic french holibob with your missus-to-be.” to this the younger blonde looks shocked, as if she thought Julie was trying to steal her fiance and had just been proven wrong. Julie finds some secret comfort in this, she did not like this woman one bit and it was nice to see her less smug. “Julie? What are you doing?” Hecate calls, as if a romantic getaway with her fiance was the last thing she wanted to do. “I am fixing a problem, ‘ave fun!” she calls as she hands the other blonde the key to the cabin. “I would pay to see that woman deal with the frozen French atmosphere ” Pippa says with a grin coming up behind the other woman as they wave the car away. Julie grinned back, trying to stop the hope that was balled up inside of her. “You ‘n’ me both Pip"  
*********  
They had been at the cabin, no they had been outside the cabin, five minutes before it all kicked off. Millie looked at Tabbie with a sly grin as she launched a fistful of snow at ‘Marilyn’ who gasped “ah my hair! Hecate tell your brats they are going to ruin my hairrrrrr” she whined like a spoiled child as she tried desperately to remove the frozen block from her head before it melted. Hecate sighed “my daughters are not brats” she said sternly but she turned to the girls “play nice” she says with a dangerous look in her eye, both girls giggle innocently. The snow was only the beginning for what Mildred and Tabbitha had planned. They played a multitude of tricks to try and scare the woman away. Hecate had to admit she found it rather funny. The girls had taken to filling all of Astoria’s things with snow in the night, so that by the morning they were soggy and cold. They used all the hot shower water so that she would end up freezing, they would dig holes in the snow and cover them so when she went on her regular night time stroll she would fall into them, but it was the time they had buried all of her cosmetics outside that she finally lost it. “Okay you little rats! I have had it up to here with you! Where is all my stuff because a locator spell sure isn't' working!” she looked from twin to twin who just stared back innocently. “We’re sorry Tori, we have no idea” they shrugged. This infuriated the woman more “now listen. You can either be nice to me and I will make your lives dreams or you can keep playing games and you’ll be living in hell like that” she clicks her fingers “because as of next week I am your future from the minute I say ‘I do’ got it?” she barks, making the girls jump. She looks pleased with herself until “See you in hell Marilyn” is replied by one girl , probably Millie, as they sneak off to plan the final prank.  
  
It was time to put the final part of their plan into action. They waited until it was pitch black outside and both adults had gone to sleep, Astoria had put herself under a sleeping spell and was, much to the girl’s amusement, snoring lightly. They were very careful as they tiptoed into the bedroom shared by their mother and Cruella. Luckily the two slept quite far apart. Tabbitha whispered some words and the blonde disappeared somewhere outside in the cold and wet. They looked at each other and grinned. Tomorrow morning was going to be so much fun. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this chapter is short and I am not at all happy with it, so sorry about that guys! and don't worry, we will be getting mumbroom endgame very soon!Xx


	12. The Aultimum

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bing bong some witch be getting gone! that is all I am going to say .

Hecate woke the next morning to find the bed empty, this was concerning, considering Astoria’s sleeping spell shouldn’t have worn off quite yet. She ignores this, for now, and decides to see if Julie had any tea in this cabin of hers, she would have loved a cup of earl grey or dejarning, she would even settle for a normal black tea, but she wasn’t awfully hopeful in search. Julie had always preferred coffee. To her surprise she found not one stray box of tea but an entire cupboard with many unopened boxes of tea in all Hecate’s favourite varieties. _‘This is pure coincidence’_ she thought to herself. There could be over a million explanations as to why Julie had tea in her cupboard, even unopened tea. She looked at the plastic wrapped cardboard in her hand, it seemed almost rude to open the box, maybe it was being saved for a special occasion? “It’s yours” comes a voice behind her. Hecate jumps, turning to find one of her daughters. Mildred, sat on the counter swinging her legs slightly. “I- pardon?” it wasn’t that she had not heard the young girls comment, she just could not make sense of it in her head. “The tea’s… there for you, or at least I think it is? Mum wouldn’t let me open them, she always said that they were in case someone special came by.” Hecate looks once more at the box in her hand, unsure of how to react to it. Surely Mildred was mistaken. It had been eleven years, ‘Julie wound not stock a cupboard of tea for a woman she hadn’t seen in eleven years!’ Hecate stopped herself. That was actually a very Julie-ish thing to do. “Are you sure? I would hate to be a trouble to your mother by opening something she thought best to save” Milie rolled her eyes, adults were always looking to make things far more complex than they needed to be. “Yes I am one hundred percent positive.” she says. Hecate smiles “well then, which type do you fancy?” she asks, it was nice to have something in common with this familiar stranger, even if it was just tea. They each have a cup of Dejarning when a scream is audible from outside and Hecate remembers that she was going to ask her daughter where her fiance was, turns out she might not need to ask. Both girls look at each other. “So… would anyone like to explain how Astoria ended up outside?” Hecate says grabbing a coat. There is a silence. To this the brunette huffs, great.   
*****  
She had barely got out the door when she was greeted by the angry blonde. “Astoria, we were just going to find you as the girl kindly explained whatever possessed them to transport you outside in freezing temperatures where you could have been seriously hurt” Hecate shoots a sideways glare at the twins. The blonde smiles “that won't be necessary, lets just go back into the cabin, we can talk there” shooting icy daggers at the girls as she lisps this with a mock sweetness. Millie gulps, they were so screwed! “We’re sorry! It was supposed to be harmless, we didn’t mean anything by it!” Tabbita was suddenly worried that they were in more trouble than they bargained for. They had only wanted to remove this woman from the picture, they never wanted to anger their mother. “ As if! You two little devils have wanted me gone since one of you got back from that camp! I put up with it for a while, but only because I had to and I promise you this I will not stand for it anymore, as of next week you will both be gone, permanently.” The younger woman leans closer to the twins as she speaks, anger flaring in her voice. Hecate takes a step in between them. “Be reasonable, they are children” she says in a soft tone. “They are spawns of satan and they need to learn a proper lesson!” Astoria replies, magic making her palm glow. “No” Hecate was firm in her response, she would not have her children come under threat over a couple of harmless tricks. “No? Whose side are you on? Actually don’t answer that! I have a new question.” The blonde looks Hecate in the eyes. “ You have a choice to make Hecate Hardbroom, me or them” The brunette smiles slightly, in a sarcastic manner “that is an extremely easy choice” she says leaving a pause. The twins watched as the blonde grins slightly, she actually thought that it would be her? “Them” Hecate says sharply, the smile is wiped off the other woman's face “ Excuse me?” she says with a bitter sounding scoff. Hecate rolls her eyes “surely you heard me? T-H-E-M. Them, should I spell it again or have you quite got the idea?” anger finally coloured her voice, she was angry at herself more than anything, how could she of everbeen so stupid to rush into an engagement with this woman? Pippa had been right all Astroia had ever wanted was money. She had been tricked and left vulnerable, she felt stupid and weak. She was so desperate to find someone to replace the hole left by Julie in her life she had almost endangered her legacy and her reputation.   
“I can’t believe you! Have fun being alone! No one will ever go near you after this, mark my words! You are over Hardbroom, Over! Enjoy going back to your whore, I hope that that old, washed up and non-magical disgrace makes you happy!” With her final words Astoria pulls the gold band off her finger and throws it in Hecate's general direction and storms off.   
****  
“You two are grounded, for…. Until I say so! Get to your room, now!” Hecate says as they return. “What ‘appened?” Julie asks, watching her daughters scurry upstairs with solemn faces. “Remind me to thank them in the future” Hecate says rather ominously. “Where’s Cruella?” Julie asks with her lopsided grin. “Gone, thank the grand wizard, she left with quite the speech and then threw this at me” the brunette produces the ring from her pocket. Julie laughs a bright, clear laugh, Hecate had a habit of attracting violent women. It seemed. “Well it could have been worse I s’pose at least it wasn’t the entire collection of herbs and spices and their magical abilities!” Julie looks at the brunette, who laughs with a shake of her head. “Yes, this time I didn’t need Pippa to perform a healing spell” she jokes back. The blonde looks guilty. “Yeah sorry ‘bout that” she looks away for a moment. “Saying that, where is Pippa? I could eat almost anything right now” Hecate says, the house seemed rather quiet.Julie gives her a mischievous smirk “she took Sarah on a broom ride…. Yesterday and they haven’t returned” this led the witch to chuckle, it was so strange that those two had become such a fast pair, she might have thought it was another way of fate bringing her to the blonde before her… if she were silly enough to believe in fate that was. “Well I suppose I will just have to cook, what do you fancy?” they walked into the kitchen. “Surprise me.” Julie answers, sounding as if breathless. So Hecate cooks pasta, Julie had always loved italian food when they were young. “Could I interest you in a drink? Tea? Coffee?” Hecate asks while dishing up. “Coffee please! I still can’t stand tea, sorry!” the blonde laughs as she notices Hecate’s insulted expression. “For someone who hates tea, your cabin was full of it” Hecate mutters making the blonde blush. “You- you found those…. They- I- it’s not as weird as it seems!” Julie hadn’t expected to be having this conversation. “After you left I found an unopened box that you’d left behind, it was a rare blend and one you favoured. So I collected every box ever sold in order to send them to you as an apology but… I never had the courage to reach out” it was Hecate’s turn to blush, it seemed. “Julie! That- I- I honestly don’t know what to say to that” she was utterly speechless. “Is that good or not?” Jule asks, she seemed to have no idea of the effect that such a simple action had on the witch. “It is very much in a positive way” they both smiled at each other, they had moved closer and closer together as the evening progressed, lost in the moment, that was until a key in the front door lock had pushed reality once more unto them. Julie jumped “that will be the lovebirds” she says in almost a whisper, moving away from the brunette slightly. Hecate may now be a free woman but Julie had the girls to think of, they both did. They couldn’t rush into a romance and Julie had no intention of being Hecate’s rebound. What she didn’t know was that Astoria had been a rebound for her the whole time. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys  
> thank you all so much for reading


	13. All good things must come to an end (or do they?)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It is time for the twins to separate and both parents to go back to their normal lives.

It was coming to the end of the school break and that meant it was time for Julie and Mildred to go back to the other side of the forest. “You’re still coming for a cup of tea and a gossip as soon as you get a day off from the hospital? Right?” Pippa asks while smothering Julie with a tight hug. “Of course Pip! Wouldn’t miss it” the blonde replies almost feeling tearful. “Well I guess this is goodbye for now then Mills” Tabbitha says pulling her twin in for a teary embrace, it was hard to say goodbye but it was only for a little while, Mildred was enrolled into Cackles and would be attending in the late autumn. So they would be up to their normal mischief very soon. The hardest goodbye of the group was that of Hecate and Julie. So much had gone on between the pair and yet nothing between them seemed resolved. Both women found themselves completely in love but unable to express how they felt. They looked at each other for a long moment until tears began to form in the corner of the blonde’s eyes. “I guess it’s time to say goodbye...again” she says softly, as if trying to hide how upset she was. “It would appear so” Hecate’s voice breaks slightly on the words but she decides the best thing to do is to let her go. What else could she do?

*****

“Okay Millie, here we go” Julie says as she unlocks the front door, Mildred runs ahead, she was upset and confused but she had missed the house. She walks into the front room to find Tabbie standing in the middle of the room with a grin. “Tab! Wh-” she starts but she's interrupted by her mum coming up behind her “Tabbie? What are you doing here?” she asks, shocked. “Well it took us about five minutes after you'd left to realise that we would be Idiots to let you go” the younger girl says. “We?” Julie is hopeful. “Did you know that it takes about five seconds to travel by transferation?” Julie knew that voice anywhere, she turns to find her favourite witch stood with a smile on her face “Hecate?” the blonde blinks as if she thinks she has conjured this woman from pure imagination. “Hi Julie.” Hecate replies soft as silk. “I- what are you doing here?” Julie was dumbfounded, there was no other word that came to mind. “I recall that there was once a time I was idiotic enough to make the mistake of letting you slip away, I am not one to make the same mistake twice.” the blonde felt her heart flutter in her chest, was this actually happening? It seemed surreal. “And you expect me to just fall into your arms? To forget the fact we come from completely different worlds and just let you kiss me while I burst into tears and cry uncontrollably because I don’t know how else to handle all the emotions that I am feeling right now?” Julie asks in a monologue type manner. She wanted all of what she had just mentioned to happen. Hecate laughs at her dramatics, Julie was a known drama queen and Hecate loved that about her “well… you wouldn’t  _ have _ to cry” the brunette says with a smile. “Oh yes I do!” Julie replies tearing up as she does exactly what she said she would. Falling into the witch’s arms as if they were 20-something again. Hecate's lips meet hers and it is as if the fire had been lit on a hot air balloon. They both feel like they are floating above the clouds and beyond as they kiss deeper. It was clear that this fairytale was, finally, going to have it’s well deserved happy ending. The twins looked over from their reunion, they had done it! They had brought their parents back together! They had a feeling they wouldn’t be saying goodbye to each other again. Not for a long time at least

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys,  
> Sorry this update took so long! The next chapter will be the last and so I just want to thank you all for reading and for all the lovely comments and support you've given this AU.


	14. Epilogue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> everyone is getting their happily ever afters.

_*A couple years later*_  
The sun had just started to break from the limited clouds in the sky, it was a hot summer evening as everyone took their seats on the grass next to the trail of flowers that marked out a makeshift aisle. There was a light breeze that hung in the air with the promise of everlasting love. The buzz of chatter filled the air as guests waited for the music to start and history to be made (once again). Hecate stood under the elegant wooden arch, her breath caught slightly in her throat. It was hot but not hot enough for her to not be dressed in her signature colour, she was wearing a tailored black suit and a dark grey shirt, her usual strict topknot was replaced by a more relaxed bun that hung over her neck. She was wearing more makeup than she would of usually liked, she thought very little of vanity but Pippa had insisted, she did a lot of that where this event was concerned. The first couple notes of the simple melody played in the air like a tease, with every note the brunette could feel her heartbeat ever so slightly quicken. She wasn’t the type of person who was normally racked with nerves, her partner, Julie, was always nervous enough for the both of them, but in this moment she was feeling something that one might class as nervous or maybe it was excitement? Whatever it was it was tying her stomach into knots. She had already been through this once, why on earth had she agreed to do this again? She hated feeling as if everyone was looking at her- hated being center of attention. _‘Julie, we are doing this for Julie’_ she reminded herself trying to stop planning various escape plans that were occupying her mind.

 _‘Julie_ ’ she thought one last time as the woman in question appeared from out of a white car at the end of the field, late and flustered, as per usual. So late in fact that she half runs, half jogs towards the outside altar in her giant dress, heeled shoes and all, it is such a bizarre turn of events that it is not until the blonde is making her way toward Hecate, that she can actually look at her and every single minute of this torture seems to have been worthwhile. This golden haired goddess right here, that was the reason that Hecate was putting herself through this, this one non-magical woman, this one small, curly haired human, the person that she had waited eleven years for her to come back into her life, was here, now and ready to marry her, properly this time. That was the reason Hecate was doing this, for Julie, and the twins, who were following behind their mum in bridesmaid dresses, one a baby blue, Mildred, and the other in lilac, Tabbitha. After getting what they wanted they began to look and act more like themselves, most of the time. Julie had finally reached the spot next to the brunette witch when she gives her a radiant smile. “You were late” the witch muses teasingly. Julie laughs “the bride is never late, you lot were all early” she replies in the same tease. They both share a laugh and the ceremony starts, with the priest and the exchange of vows and some more witchy add-ons, such as the tying of hands together with a ribbon and the throwing of herbs and petals at the couple, for good luck and health. It was a combination of both worlds, just like the family themselves. There was just one thing left to do. “Do you Joy Hecate Hardbroom, take Julie Mirabella Hubble to be yours from this day forth to the ending of time?” Hecate takes the blonde's hand and wipes away a tear from her cheek. “I do.” she says with a smile. “And do you, Julie Mirabella Hubble take this witch to be yours to have and to hold from this day forth?” Julie laughs slightly “well It’d be kind of awkward if I said no, now wouldn’t it?” she jokes, there is a pause. “Oh my I’m kidding! I’m Kidding! Oh course I do!” she says in sudden panic. “Well then I think you earned the right to kiss your bride” and kiss they do, it is long, but not too long to be rude, and full of passion and pure love, it was the exact type of kiss that you’d see the main characters have at the end of an old film and it was the perfect ending to this hectic and beautiful chapter of our main characters lives. Everyone had finally got the happy ending they deserved. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so that's it for this little AU, thankyou so much for all the support you've given it! Also I am currently in the process of writing a secret agent AU for this pair so stay tuned for that, and if you have any prompts or any others ships you would like me to write about please, please(!) suggest them to me!

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you guys like this idea! as I said in the summary, the parent trap is one of my favourite films and well I thought that a Mumbroom version would be funny


End file.
